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Have you ever had the pleasure to sit on a stool, lean over the counter of a small sidewalk restaurant in Tijuana, and enjoy a delicious, juicy torta de carne asada, hot off the griddle, that was just custom-cooked for you only seconds before it was served to you? Especially, since it's loaded up with all of the condiments? Believe me, if you've never experienced the joys of a freshly cooked torta, you should pay a visit to Tacos El Taconazo, located at the corner of Calle Articulo 123 and Av. F. Martinez, in downtown Tijuana, just a block west of the infamous Zona Norte, the largest red light district on the North American continent. I have a tendency to pass through "The Zone" in an attempt to ferret out dining fare in a more conventional environment, but to its credit, "The Zone," offers many fine places to eat, and I've eaten in many restaurants located in "The Zone." But that's another story...
Photo: Is this bright facace an attention-getter or what? The billboard says it all... Saturday morning, January 19, 2008, I found myself hungry, and while hiking west on Calle Articulo 123, I arrived at the corner of Av.Martinez, and discovered a diner's paradise, that is, if you enjoy the cuisine of taco stands, push-cart vendors, and small loncherias, as there are over a dozen restaurants and food vendors that are located in the vicinity this corner. Av. Martinez, north of Articulo 123 is closed to vehicle traffic, and the street is populated with street vendors, trailer restaurants, food carts, selling just about any sort of food that you can imagine. If you sampled every vendor or restaurant at this corner, it would take a few days to take them all in, but my time was somewhat limited, and the colorful facade of Tacos El Taconazo, and the comfy counter invited me to rest my weary bones, sit down, and order a cold Coca-Cola while I pondered what I wanted to eat for breakfast. Tacos El Taconazo does not have a menu, not even a hand-printed menu in their kitchen, but the facade of the restaurant gaily advertises that they specialize in tortas, burritos, and tacos, in the flavor of asada, pastor and cabeza. With a leading name such as "Tacos," you'd think that would be the specialty of the restaurant, but the only guy at the restaurant, Pablo, told me that all he was serving was carne asada, or pastor tortas, as he hadn't received his morning shipment of corn tortillas from the guy that he normally purchases them from. Funny, as all of the other vendors seemed to have sufficient quantities of corn tortillas... I'm a HUGE fan of tortas, so I ordered a carne asada torta, for the rock-bottom price of only MEX $16.00. What a bargain!
Photo: Pablo cooks carne asada on the griddle, with condiments in the foreground. The restaurant is located along a busy sidewalk, as noted by the pedestrian traffic to the left of the photo. Pablo was a busy man, yet quite friendly, and he attempted to answer the many questions that I peppered him with as I watched him make my custom-made carne asada torta before my eyes. The griddle was already hot, and he reached into a bowel, next to the griddle, and pulled out thinly sliced carne asada, that had been marinating. I asked him what he used to marinade the meat, and he replied that he only used seasoned salt; how simple can that be. He placed the meat on the griddle, turned around, and grabbed a rectangular roll from a plastic display case, and deftly split it in half with a sharp knife. He then stuck the knife into a large jar of mayonnaise, and applied mayonnaise to the cut side of the roll halves and placed them face down, on the griddle, next to the cooking meat. The whole operation took, maybe, a little over a minute? While he was busily engaged in the act of making my torta, I was asking him questions about his operation and his recipes. This guy is a multi-tasker, and he knows what he's doing. Pablo asked me what I wanted on my torta, and in a single phrase, I replied "con todo," and he acknowledged my choice with a smile, as who doesn't want "the works" when you order a delicious carne asada torta from a small Mexican taqueria? When the roll halves were toasted, he removed them from the griddle and placed them face up on a plastic plate, then he removed the steak that was cooking on the griddle, placed it on a cutting board, and chopped it into fine pieces with a sharp meat cleaver. The cooked meat was placed on the one of the roll halves, then he dipped a spoon into a pot and spooned a bit of chili purée, cooked in beef broth, and spiced with garlic, oregano and cumin, onto the meat, and a little bit of the sauce onto the other roll, just to coat it a bit. After the sauce had been applied, he placed shredded lettuce on top of the mound of meat, followed by diced white onions, and finally a load of creamy, runny guacamole. The other toasted half of the roll was squashed on top of the roll loaded with meat and "stuff," and then the whole thing was placed on the griddle for a final toasting.
Photo: Delicious carne asada, cooking on the griddle, close-up and personal. From order to delivery, the time was about three minutes, which is little time time to watch a delicious carne asada torta, complete with all the condiments, be prepared before your eyes. It's especially difficult, if you're like this reporter and you're curious about everything and ask numerous questions, most of them stupid, yet how else are you going to know what's going on in a place like Tacos El Taconazo? What about the torta you ask? In a word: Delicious. The roll is toasted perfectly golden brown, yet its soft and chewey, and tastes similar to a French roll. The meat is juicy, and drips the applied chili sauce, and the loads on condiment add to the flavor. You bit into the torta, and juice just ooooozes out... thank goodness that there are plenty of napkins available, as you'll need a few of them. You can't resist a second bit, as the taste of the creamy guacamole kicks in. Truly, a torta enjoyed at Tacos El Taconazo transports you to torta nirvana!
Photo: MEX $16.00 for this delicious torta? Yes! This is one of the best carne asada tortas that I've ever had the pleasure to enjoy. There are many places to enjoy a delicious torta in Tijuana, but for friendly service, and an unbelievably low price, you can't beat Tacos El Taconazo, as they serve a delicious torta, for about half the price of a BigMac, stateside. For lots of change less than $3.00, I enjoyed a Mexican Coke, and a custom-made torta de carne asada, which is a bargain. In addition to enjoying wonderful Tijuana cuisine, I got to chat with the gentleman, Pablo, who prepares the food, and observe what he does, and how he makes this magic happen, and to actually learn how to recreate his delicious product in the comfort of my own home. Not to mention, you get to rub shoulders with locals, and get the opportunity to associate with some of the many "real" people, who call Tijuana their home. I highly recommend Tacos El Taconazo, for delicious tortas, friendly service, and inexpensive prices. Tacos
El Taconazo Copyright(c) 2008 eRench Productions, Inc. All rights reserved. This site has been on the web since December 22, 2002. Web page design has been created by eRench Productions, Inc., custon photography for any occasion...
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